Axe baffles Bathinda cops, no trace of killers of 4 soldiers

BATHINDA: The two masked killers of four soldiers of an artillery unit inside Bathinda military station are still at large and police are baffled by the fact that one of them was seen carrying an axe, although the quartet died of gunshots and doctors didn't find any wound inflicted by a sharp-edged weapon on the bodies.
Gunners Yogesh Kumar, Sagar Banne, Kamlesh R and Santosh M Nagaral - all between 24 and 25 years - died in the attack at 4.35am Wednesday.
There's still no clarity on whether the suspects were from inside the military station or they were intruders who absconded after committing the crime.
'5th soldier's death is suicide, not tied to killings of others'
Bathinda SP (investigations) Ajay Gandhi said: "So far there is no input about the alleged killers. Police are investigating the crime. The autopsy report says the cause of death of all four is gunshot wounds."
The military station saw the death of another soldier, identified as Laghuraj, around 4.30pm Wednesday. He had a gunshot wound in his head and his service weapon was found next to him. Army authorities said it appears to be a case of suicide and has no connection with the killing of the four soldiers.
An FIR lodged by Major Ashutosh Shukla says soldier Desai Mohan had told him that two persons wearing white kurta-pyjama, and their face and head covered, were seen leaving the barracks near the officers' mess, with one carrying an Insas rifle and the other an axe.
The suspects fled towards a forest abutting the military station. The authorities had recovered 19 spent shells from two rooms on the first floor of the barracks where the four slain men were sleeping.
An Insas rifle and 28 rounds had gone missing on April 9 and a complaint was subsequently lodged with police. Search teams had found an Insas Wednesday evening, but it couldn't be ascertained if it was the same lost rifle.
Watch Bathinda firing: Search on for two masked men